BBI Infotower for East Germany’s largest building site

07.12.2006

airportworld bbi refurbished / New permanent BBI exhibition opens

Due to the great increase in interest in the new airport for Germany’s capital city, Berlin Airports is pleased to announce plans to extend the BBI information centre and the range of visitor activities available at the airport. In phase one of the extension plans, the information and visitor centre airportworld bbi at Schönefeld Airport was expanded and now includes a new permanent BBI exhibition. On the occasion of the official opening of the exhibition, airport CEO Dr. Rainer Schwarz said, “Europe’s most modern airport is being built in Berlin Schönefeld and we want to communicate this exciting information to an international audience, while at the same time heightening interest in the region around Germany’s capital city. To achieve this goal we intend to use an experience-oriented construction marketing approach, similar to that used at Potsdamer Platz in the city centre. The centrepiece of our construction marketing will be the 32-metre high BBI Infotower, which opens to the public on the building site in mid-2007.”

The BBI Infotower was presented at the opening of the refurbished airportworld bbi. In his speech, Managing Director Thomas Weyer explained the design: “The key design characteristics of the Infotower are modernity and transparency. It symbolises the start of a new era for the Berlin region which the expansion of the airport will bring.” The Infotower was designed by the Berlin team of architects Kusus+Kusus. The design presented by the two young architects Karin und Ramsi Kusus was chosen by a panel of experts for BBI. In total, six teams of architects submitted designs for the tower, three from Berlin and three from Brandenburg. Karin Kusus said that the symbolism and the originality of the new Infotower was intended to represent the construction site and the new BBI. “The novel form and the innovative materials symbolise the new, young Berlin and the future of the Berlin-Brandenburg region.”

The BBI Infotower is an unusual and highly expressive shape. Based on a triangular form, the tower twists to form a striking object offering spectacular views from all sides. The shell is made of a transparent membrane which underscores the dynamic shape of the tower and which will also form the backdrop for impressive illuminations. The membrane is printed with fluoropolymers and by day appears in a variety of shades of blue and white. After sunset, coloured light diodes transform the tower into an impressive column of light. Throughout the construction phase the Infotower will stand as a visible symbol of the new BBI.

Another new feature is the new permanent BBI exhibition, airportworld bbi. The exhibition provides a wealth of information about the construction of BBI. A BBI model and information panels explain the complex workings of the new airport. Terminal fact sheets and a cross-section depict the modern architecture and a diverse range of functions. The exhibition will also show how the heating and air conditioning systems work and explain the innovative technologies that will be used to tap into geothermal sources to heat the terminal. Extensive information will be provided on the noise protection programme, one of Berlin Airports’ key challenges. A simulator will replicate noise levels in a variety of situations with closed, tilted and open noise-protection windows. Other BBI topics covered at the exhibition include intermodal traffic/connections, construction site logistics, wireless airport, the Airport City and Business Park Berlin investment locations, job engine, environmental management and the principle of low-cost traffic.

airportworld bbi is open daily except for Saturdays, from 10am to 6pm. Entrance to the exhibition is free. For more information about the exhibition, please give us a call on +49 (0)30 6091 2070.